Dear Editor

It was a beautiful morning last Wednesday. The sun was finally shining as I walked down to feed the orphan koalas I have in care. This gives me great pleasure as they tussle over who gets first serve of their supplement.  After many months of care it won’t be long till they are due for weaning and then the final stages of preparing them for release back to the wild.

Then I heard the bulldozers start up around 5km away. It was only a short while ago I found out that they have been logging in our area. This is not a plantation but a real forest on private land with old trees. The sound drained out the good feelings created by the winter sun and cute behavior of the koalas.

Later I watched from my local school the logging truck pass, full with freshly cut logs. I looked at the children laughing and playing and thought - trees of that size and age will not grow again in these children’s lifetimes let alone mine.

As Care Coordinator of Friends of the Koala I organized vet visits for 4 chronically ill koalas that day. Two were immediately euthanased the other two have a poor prognosis due to the nature of their illnesses.

Fragmentation and loss of habitat is a contributor to these illnesses of which we are seeing more and more in the Northern Rivers. Already listed as a vulnerable species in NSW the koala will have its National status reviewed over the coming twelve months. If what is happening in the Northern Rivers is a reflection of what is happening nationally,  I think this needs to be done now.  

This is an iconic animal apart from being considered by many as one of the ‘most appealing mammals known to man’. Yet, between hunting them for their fur in the early 1900s, cutting their trees down and a failure of our authorities to recognize the severe impact disease is having on many populations we seem determined to be rid of them with quite a few other species along the way.

Cleaning out the runs of the orphans that afternoon was not such a pleasurable experience.  I pondered what future these little ones had. They did their usual antics of jumping from branch to branch, giving each other cuddles and playful bites as well as smelling each fresh leaf well before deciding if it was worthwhile to munch on.

The thought of the future of my ‘furry’ babies is bad enough, the thought of my children being in a world without koalas and what that represents is something that is just too depressing to consider even though it is rapidly becoming a reality.

I would encourage all Northern Rivers residents to do what they can to help preserve this species before it is too late. Further information can be found at the Friends of the Koala website at www.friendsofthekoala.org

Barbara Dobner

Care Coordinator

Friends of the Koala